IWSG: Author Reflections OR Oh My Gosh, How Did I Get Here?

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting!

Let’s rock the neurotic writing world! Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG.

The awesome co-hosts for the September 7 posting of the IWSG are Kim Lajevardi,Cathrina Constantine,Natalie Aguirre,Olga Godim,Michelle Wallace,and Louise - Fundy Blue!

My answer to this month's question is at the bottom...

Recently I signed up for a Science Fiction Writer's Week sponsored by ProWritingAid (Which I don't use, but it was a free week of great classes, so you know...) Of course, I missed the entire week it was live, and I am now trying to watch as many as I can before losing access to the replays.

Two things always hit me when I go to conferences or watch webinars.

1. I'm doing this writing thing all wrong

2. But somehow it's working for me (sort of)

Weird huh? It's so important to keep learning about ourselves, the foundations of good writing, craft, and everything else that can make us successful authors. And yet, those same things can aggravate our insecurity.

I was feeling down about it all and thinking I needed to pull all my books (almost 20 of them now) from Amazon and rewrite them using the things I've been learning. Luckily, I took a deep breath and remembered something else from this past year.

My books are pretty amazing!

Earlier in the year, I binge-listened to all of them--the scifi and the romance. So many times I'd catch myself thinking,

"How did I come up with that?"

OR

"Did I write this? It's really good."

Every time I surprised myself with the overall quality of the story. Sure, there were issues with repetitive words, but I'm getting better. The story itself, the character arcs, and the emotions that came through were all top-notch.

Despite me!

I may not be famous. My books might not be perfect. But you know what? I'm really proud of what I've accomplished.

The things that are important to me come through my stories.

• Self-love is crucial to feeling whole, finding your place in society, and accomplishing your goals

• When we accept ourselves and our strengths and weaknesses, we can accept others with theirs

• We all crave and deserve a place that feels like home

That's pretty fantastic for making things up as I go along.

Will I keep learning more and trying to improve my storytelling skills? Of course, I will.

In the meantime, I'm going to choose every day to be more aware of what I've already learned and accomplished.

September 7 question - What genre would be the worst one for you to tackle and why?

My first thought was Horror because I don't like to watch it or read it. I also thought I wouldn't be good at writing dark. However, my mom pointed out that I did skin a mage alive in my first book. She desperately tried to heal herself during the process but couldn't keep up. That's pretty dark, but I don't know how gruesome it actually reads. Probably not nearly as intense as it was in my head since it was my first completed novel.

So, if I had to, I could give horror a try, but I don't think it would be very good for more than a scene.

The next genre that would be the worst for me is anything that relies on heavy political background or motivations. I hate politics with a passion even though it is a necessary part of life. The older I get, the more I want to find my own hobbit hole to hide away in and let the rest of the world fall apart.

Although, pretending the rest of the world didn't exist didn't keep The Shire safe.